Breaking: More Trouble For Atiku As Wike, Seyi Makinde, Ortom, Others Announce New PDP Faction

The presidential flag barrier of The People’s Democrats Party (PDP) Atiku Abubakar presidential touch is about to be deemed by some angry party members.

 Amidst the crisis in the party, a new faction called Integrity Group was officially formed on Sunday as the crisis in the party takes a new turn.

The group is composed of aggrieved party stalwarts and five governors (G5) of the party who are up in arms against the national leadership since the fall out of the presidential primary election in May, where former vice president Atiku Abubakar emerged as presidential candidate.

The G5, led by Rivers governor Nyesom Wike, who came second at the party’s primary, have been clamouring for the resignation of the PDP National Chairman, Dr Iyorchia Ayu, shortly after the party’s presidential ticket was won by a northerner, Atiku Abubakar.

Other governors in the group are Samuel Ortom of Benue, Seyi Makinde of Oyo, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu and Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia.

The governors and some aggrieved party leaders are currently having a strategic meeting in Lagos, which may not be unconnected to the agitation for the removal of Mr Ayu.

Addressing reporters before going into a closed-door meeting, Mr Makinde said the Integrity Group remained the face behind the struggle within the PDP.

Mr Makinde said: “We are here this morning to hold a meeting of the Integrity Group within our party, the PDP. We have been of the G5- that is, the five PDP governors. The G5 is all about the Integrity Group.

“You can see us, five serving governors, as the face of this struggle. Both the leaders and elders of the party that you see here are the people behind those faces.

“We are in the South-West to review the situation within our party, to review where we are and to also look at what is going to happen in the coming elections,” he said.

Mr Makinde noted that at the end of the deliberations, the group would fully brief the media on their stand on all the burning issues within the main opposition party.

“On behalf of our leaders and elders in the south west, I want to welcome members of the Integrity Group and wish us well,” he said.

Other PDP leaders at the meeting are former governors, Olusegun Mimiko (Ondo State), Ayo Fayose (Ekiti), Donald Duke (Cross River), Jonah Jang (Plateau) and former Deputy National Chairman of the PDP, Bode George.

Also present are former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Bello Adoke; Deputy National Chairman South of the PDP, Taofeek Arapaja; Senator Nasif Suleiman, Nnena Ukeje, Cross River governorship candidate, Senator Sandy Onor and Senator Mao Ohabunwa.

The party leaders have repeatedly maintained that Mr Ayu must resign for the sake of fairness and justice so as to bring peace to the party.

The aggrieved group maintained the need for the South to produce the party’s national chairman after Mr Abubakar because the party’s presidential flag-bearer for the 2023 general election is from the North.

 

Obi Is A Noble Man, He Can Be Trusted To Change Nigeria For Good — Ortom

The Governor of Benue State, Dr Samuel Ortom, has reiterated his call for the presidential candidates of the major political parties to rally behind the Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party, Mr Peter Obi, who he described as a noble man in all ramifications of life, tested and trusted, and has the needed integrity, character and capacity to fix the nation.

Ortom made the call when Obi visited him to commiserate with him over the destruction of lives and means of livelihood, by the recent floods which swept through Benue and some other states in Nigeria. He lamented that Nigeria was surviving on life support and needs a true leader who can turn things around for the nation. He said that if the people did not live above ethnic, tribal and partisan sentiments, they would not be able to vote in the true leader who is most qualified to lead the nation.

“Nigeria is sick and surviving on oxygen. The country is on life support and everything is in disarray. Let us therefore put aside partisanship and join hands to salvage the country. I have said before and I am repeating this again, ‘we must look at the 3 major candidates and see who has the capacity to deliver this country and make things work.’ Let us be frank with ourselves because we are toying with the future of 200 million people.

“Nigeria deserves a better leadership that is proactive, foresighted and visionary. I look forward and hope that the candidates of the 3 major political parties will meet and allow this man (Peter Obi) to lead this country now. I am in PDP, and working for PDP. But I must confess that if I was not in PDP, I would have been working for Peter Obi.

“My brother, Peter Obi, has always been a noble man in all aspects of life. He is a man full of integrity, truthful and reliable. He may not be a perfect man, because nobody is, that is why life is complimentary. But he has proven himself to be a man that can be trusted, that has the capacity, the knowledge, the ability and the fear of God that will enable him to head this country,” Ortom said.

In his reaction, Obi appreciated his host for the warm welcome. He expressed sadness of destruction left behind by the deadly floods in the State. He called on other presidential aspirants to suspend their campaigns for the meantime and take time to sympathize with the victims of floods across the country. “I personally stopped and told my people to suspend the campaigns for the meantime, until we are able to visit some of our people badly affected by the floods. If we, as presidential candidates, were able to spend several millions of naira purchasing our nomination forms, then we should have something left to show concern to those whose lives have been badly altered by the floods,” Obi stated.

He assured Nigerians that he will respect the rights of every citizen, if elected into power.

“If I am elected as the President of this great country, I will not sacrifice the peace, unity and development of this nation, just to make a few people happy. I am not promising a few people happiness, but I am promising to fix the nation for the greater good of all. I can assure people that I will be in charge, and we will change this country. You will see people being pulled out of poverty. We did it in Anambra State, and will do it again at the Federal level,” Obi concluded.